1) Field of the Invention
The field of this invention relates to storage containers and more particularly to a storage container which works in conjunction with a lid so as to vary the size of the storage compartment incorporated within the container.
2) Description of the Prior Art
The present invention will be discussed in terms of a storage container for food with this storage container intended to be utilized within a conventional refrigerator cabinet, drawer or other storing location. However, it is considered to be within the scope of this invention that the storage container can be utilized to store contents other than food.
It is exceedingly common to store food in bowls within refrigerators. This food is then to be consumed at a later time. It has been common practice to utilize a series of different sizes of storage containers with the particular size of storage container being selected to correspond to the amount of food that is to be stored. Therefore, inherently a user must have available several different sizes of storage containers since the quantity of food will generally vary significantly.
In the storing of food, the food will retain its freshness and be more palatable if air is minimized in the storage compartment. In the past, it has been known to construct a food storage container that has a reversible lid. The reversible lid is bulbous and can be adjusted to increase or decrease the size of the storage compartment. When the storage container is utilized to store a contents which are significantly less than the total volume of the storage compartment of the storage container, the lid can be reversed and occupy the upper portion of the storage compartment thereby decreasing the amount of air contained within that storage compartment and hence decreasing the amount of air that comes into contact with the food. However, the prior art storage containers with reversible lids are constructed to be rather complex and of a significant expense to manufacture and thereby to purchase by the consumer.